A+E Networks’ Upfront announcements included new events and new series on A&E, History, Lifetime and FYI. Coming up on A&E: Fit 2 Fat 2 Fit, putting personal trainers to the weight loss test, and The Critics’ Choice Movie Awards and Critics’ Choice Television Awards. History launches survival experiment Alone this summer, and has scripted series Boys of 67 in development.

Event series Roots, a remake of the 1977 phenomenon, will be simulcast on History, A&E and Lifetime. Will Packer (Ride Along) exec produces, and original Roots cast member LeVar Burton is onboard as co-exec producer. “There is a huge audience of contemporary young Americans who do not know the story of Roots or its importance,” said Burton. “I believe now is the right time to tell this story so that we can all be reminded of its impact on our culture and identity.” Premiere is slated for 2016.

Unreal, a drama about the chaos behind the scenes at a dating show that is the first scripted series from A+E Studios, debuts on Lifetime June 1. Also joining Lifetime is Sing It! (wt), a docu-series about a cappella groups. In the wings at FYI: foodie series What the Fung?!, and spin-off docu-series Married at First Sight: The First Year.

“Content is at the heart of everything we do,” said Nancy Dubuc, president and CEO, A+E Networks. “We aren’t afraid to take creative risks, which is the main ingredient in our recipe for change…We’ve started new genres; we’ve been the first and the best, time and time again. But the bar is always being raised, and we realize more than ever that good isn’t good enough. We need to create great. And that’s a good thing – because we’re a company of great creators.”

Outdoor Sportsman Group

Outdoor Sportsman Group shared Upfront plans for its Outdoor Sportsman Group Networks division, made up of Outdoor Channel, Sportsman Channel and World Fishing Network, at its NYC event Wednesday night. Jason Brist, EVP of ad sales, touted the nets’ unique relationship with their loyal audiences, as well as opportunities to entertain, inform and engage the 130 million-plus active outdoor adventure participants and armchair observers in the U.S. “Outdoor Channel, Sportsman Channel and World Fishing Network viewers are a diverse, passionate, media savvy and receptive segment of American consumers with spending power,” said Brist. “We’ve made dramatic strides in elevating our audience’s experience, on-air, online and on-the-go, and have created smart, ROI-driven marketing opportunities that truly resonate with those that choose to make outdoor pursuits a way of life; you can’t ‘buy around’ our highly engaged audience.”

Flexible and creative alternatives including TV Everywhere and OTT offerings were part of the pitch, as well as a cross-platform solution for ad partners interested in engaging with fans in the digital, mobile and social spaces. Advertisers can also tap into Outdoor Sportsman Group’s established Outdoor Sportsman Group Integrated Media arm, including publishing and digital brands like Petersen’s Bowhunting, North American Whitetail and Fly Fisherman, among others. Other integration opportunities include branded entertainment, sponsorships, product placements and stunts. “No other networks offering adventure entertainment can leverage multiple platforms to create powerful, contextual consumer-focused marketing solutions like we can,” said group president and CEO Jim Liberatore.

IFC is heading into client meetings this Upfront season with a good story to tell: the channel is enjoying its fourth consecutive year of double-digit growth, up 18 percent in 2014, according to Sales SVP Vanessa Benfield. “This year’s presentation has unlocked a lot of early RFP’s,” says Benfield. "We try harder.”

Val Boreland, EVP, head of programming and production, announced that Revolt is teaming with Snoop Dogg to bring his popular YouTube show GGN “to linear television for the first time ever.” Another new show, Day Today, is a docu-series focusing on the music, career, and personal life of rapper Wiz Khalifa. The network also recently finalized an agreement with ESPN/XGames. 

“I asked myself, ‘What are you most proud of this first year?” says Revolt chairman Sean Combs, “and for me the biggest thing was that we delivered on our promises. Right now there aren’t a lot of music outlets creating authentic, unique content, and that’s one of the things we have: we are able to deliver the talent on-air, every day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.”

Keep Watching & Reading,
Lynn Leahey, Editor
Roberta Caploe: Associate Publisher @robertacaploe
Diane K Schwartz: Senior Vice President, Media Communications Group

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